


First Steps

by MILF



Category: Fire Emblem Series, Fire Emblem: Kakusei | Fire Emblem: Awakening
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/F, Fluff, Henry is only implied, Light Angst, breadstickery
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-23
Updated: 2017-02-23
Packaged: 2018-09-26 09:52:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,934
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9884573
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MILF/pseuds/MILF
Summary: All Anna wanted expected was a little wine and dine, but she gave so much more.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! This was my entry for a Valentine's Contest that was held on the /r/FERoleplaying Discord server and also my first ever fanfiction, which is good!  
> I ended up getting third place w̶h̶i̶c̶h̶ ̶g̶o̶t̶ ̶m̶e̶ ̶n̶o̶t̶h̶i̶n̶g̶ ̶b̶u̶t̶ ̶a̶ ̶p̶a̶t̶ ̶o̶n̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶b̶a̶c̶k̶ ̶s̶m̶h̶ ̶s̶m̶h̶ ̶s̶m̶h̶ but hey that's nice I guess.
> 
> Oh, and since I'm not really great at this whole writing thing, if you're willing to leave some constructive feedback that would be absolutely wonderful! Thank you!

She woke from her rest, stretching out under the covers while slowly attempting to open her eyes, still feeling a bit fatigued. Adjusting herself, she sits up with a small groan, stretching again as she rubs her eyes and opens them. After sweeping some of her red locks out of her face, she took in the surroundings. Having only moved into the apartment about a week ago, everything still seemed so new and unfamiliar. It reminded her of when she was younger and would sleep over at a friend’s house, that odd feeling of waking up somewhere that’s not your own. You know, except without a pancake breakfast ready for her. Reminiscing aside though, it’s time to seize the day! Pushing off the warm, fluffy blankets, the sudden assault of cold air woke her up quicker than she usually likes. Quickly noting in her head to start wearing more to bed, she threw herself off the bed and ran towards her dresser praying that she unpacked her sweatpants. Scouring through the drawers she quickly found a pair of sweatpants with her old high school’s name listed down one leg. Deciding to place comfort above giving free advertising to the one school in the area, she quickly slipped them on, eagerly awaiting for when her body would properly warm up. Glancing at the bed, Anna considered just maybe… taking a little rest. Just wrap herself up in the warm embrace of her bedding, curl up in a cozy little ball and just have a little nap.

 

Unfortunately, time is money and sleeping doesn’t help you make any. She grabbed a loose fitting graphic tee and slipped it on. Turning towards the bedroom door, she made eye contact with her reflection in the mirror on the back of said door. Her bedhead was ridiculous, looking as though she ran through a wind tunnel in her sleep, her pants didn’t match her shirt at all and just as a final nail in the coffin she noticed now the sweatpants were just a bit too small for her ultimately situating the end of the pant leg a bit above her ankle. After studying her reflection for a minute, she couldn’t help but let out a little chuckle.

 

“Now aren’t you quite the catch Miss Moneybags?” She said to herself.

 

She may not quite be “presentable” per say but at least the ensemble was decently comfortable. Absentmindedly wondering if she could get away with wearing this into work, Anna forgot all that and opened the bedroom door, stepping out in the main room of the apartment. Towards the right side was a small living room esque piece, complete with a free couch (that still kinda smelled like cleaner) and a small table adorned with an equally small TV and a game console with accessories tossed off in a yet-to-be-unpacked box. To the left was a diner-esque bar with three little seats beside it with a kitchenette on the other side, the whole piece serving as a kitchen-dining room combo. Subconsciously shaking her leg as she thought, Anna ended up swiveling around to the door opposite the bedroom and opened it, coming into the bathroom.

 

Anna once again took in her surroundings, still feeling oddly not at home in her, well, new home. She turned to the sink and, after a quick search, found her toothbrush and accompanying toothpaste. Slowly squirting out the toothpaste onto the brush and starting to brush her teeth lazily, Anna let her mind wander. She didn’t have much to do today, not that she could think of at least, and considered her options for entertainment. While the idea of going out seemed nice with rent she was cautious to do so to say the least. Maybe she’d call up Tiki and see if she’d like to head out for the day, though knowing Tiki she’s either still sleeping or just getting ready to head to bed now, and that kind of ruins that plan. Maybe she could call up Robin, they were decent friends back in high school and why not start reconnecting? Anna then remembered hearing about how Robin had gotten married recently to some happy-go-lucky idiot and discarded that plan. Chances are she’d either be too busy to show or she wouldn’t be alone which would, in Anna’s eyes, it’s always best to do things one-on-one. Shrugging it off as she finished brushing, Anna put off the thought of what to do today in favor of thinking of breakfast. Exiting the bathroom and walking towards her kitchenette, she grabbed her phone that was sitting on the bar charging.  
  
The phone’s display turned on as Anna unplugged it and she shot it a quick glance. _4:13 PM, February 14th._ Pocketing her phone, she turned towards her fridge and- wait. Anna yanked her phone out, gawking at the screen. Did she just sleep until 4PM!? Visibly shaken by this, Anna’s mind started racing. What if something really important happened and she missed it? What if something happened at work? What if… Anna took a quick breath in and collected herself. It’s fine. Besides, she doesn’t work the tuesday shift. She pulled down on her phone’s screen, opening the notifications, and was relieved to see just some junk mail and random notifications from Facebook. Anna couldn’t help feeling relieved as she loosened up a bit, only to jump when her phone buzzed in her hand. Glancing towards the phone that just a few seconds ago gave her a panic attack, she was saw a text notification from… Tiki!? Anna opened the message gleefully.

 

“Anna are you working today” Tiki’s message read.  
“oh no, honestly i just woke up, what do you need?” Anna replied.

“I don’t want to cook so I’m going out for italian”

“italian?? lol you never told me ur rich. so are you just txting me to make me hungry???”

“Very funny but I want to come with me”

“oh how you spoil me so! am i your valentine bcuz lets pay my rent too lol.”

“No I just want to get the couples discount”

“you make me proud but im broke so ill pass.”

“I’ll pay”

 

Anna’s eyes lit up as she read those words, quickly asking Tiki where they’ll be meeting and when, as Anna ran to go get into something somewhat more presentable. Settling on some jeans, a tshirt, and a navy blue peacoat to brave the February chill, Anna left behind her suburban apartment to go meet with Tiki.

 

Running towards the restaurant Tiki told Anna to meet her at, Anna was somewhat out of breath. It may have only been about a twenty minute walk, but with the surprising amount of road traffic outside her apartment complex it felt like hours. Visibly winded as she approached, Anna shouted as she saw a familiar green bun.

 

“Tiki!” Anna yelled as the woman in front of her turned. Tiki, with her pale green hair up in a bun, was wearing a somewhat semi-formal outfit. She donned a short burgundy dress that went down to her knees with some stockings of the same color underneath. She wore a thin leather jacket that’d look more at place in a board room, clearly a show of Tiki’s uncertainty in actually finding something warm. In her bun, Anna could seemingly make out a small gold colored clip.

 

Tiki sighed as Anna approached but ultimately faced her with a smile. The two quickly exchanged a brief hug and dashed inside without a word. Once they were in however, it seemed their jaws both came loose.

 

“Anna, you look… ridiculous.” Tiki said with her standard flat tone but it was as though she was stifling back a giggle.

“This,” Anna motioned to herself “is what I call metro chic.”

“It’s what I call waking up late.” Tiki said with an almost cheeky tone.

“Like you can criticize me for sleeping in?” Anna looked towards Tiki with a smile on her face, barely holding back a laugh.

 

Tiki sighed and stepped forward into the establishment, Anna following close behind. The two eventually were escorted to a table, a small circular one covered with a white horribly cliche cloth off in a corner, and were handed menus.

 

“I’ll leave you two love _birds_ to make your decision.” The white haired waiter said after leaving their menus and a small basket of breadsticks at the table, walking away with a little smirk on his face.

 

Tiki reached out for a breadstick, taking one and breaking it in half. She starts eating on of the halves when she eyes Anna at the other side of the table, sitting comfortably with her gaze wandering.

“Are you… not hungry?” Tiki inquired. Anna focused her gaze back on Tiki, shifting a bit as she leaned closer.

“Are the breadsticks free?” Anna said in a hushed tone with a smirk spread across her face.

Tiki nodded alongside a slight chuckle as she sees Anna eagerly grab three of the breadsticks and proceeded to chomp down on them. Anna’s over-the-top demeanor was always entertaining and maybe it does pull the attention of a nearby patron or two but why would any of them care when they’re enjoying themselves so? Putting Anna’s indulgence to the side for a moment, Tiki is the first to grab one of the menus and begins browsing the entrees, while Anna enjoys her breadsticks. After skimming the dishes available, Tiki places her menu down to ask Anna what she had in mind when she finds herself face-to-face with a breadstick.

 

“General Tiki! I challenge you to single combat!” Anna exclaimed making dramatic movements with her free hand whilst waving the breadstick in front of Tiki’s face like a practice sword. With a smile on her face, Tiki bats Anna’s breadstick away but Anna persists, always coming back with her gluten rapier. Anna jabs at Tiki’s nose with the baked baton, a look of almost childlike innocence on her face as stifles a laugh when Tiki instinctively jumps back in her seat. Taking advantage of Anna’s momentary distraction, Tiki lunges forward and bites off a decent chunk of Anna’s breadstick.

 

“Gah! I’ve been defeated!” Anna clutches at her chest dramatically as she observes what remained of her imaginary sword.

“Gods Anna, you’re like a little kid.” Tiki said in between attempts to hold back a snicker. Honestly, Anna’s sometimes fluctuant demeanor was one of the things Tiki found so entertaining about her, whether it be On-the-job Anna or The legendary Hero-Queen Anna she always managed to put a smile on Tiki’s face. It was almost a nostalgic feeling, being around her like this.

 

“Aww, aren’t you just two birds in a nest?” Anna and Tiki simultaneously jumped in their seats as they heard the voice of the white haired waiter once again. “Now here’s some salad to ease you in, I hope you’re not a _caw_ nivore, nyeh-heh!” The waiter placed two salad bowls down on the table before remarking about how he’ll be back soon to check up on us.

 

Anna grabbed the salad bowl in front of her, placing it off to the side and finally picking up the menu for the first time since sitting down. Briefly reading through the food on offer, Anna put down her menu and started rubbing her temples.

“Hey Tiki,” Anna began, still rubbing her temples (and now having closed her eyes) to exaggerate her thought process “is it rude of me to order a salad after they give me a salad as an appetizer?”

 

_They’re oddly similar, now that I think about it. Maybe a bit too laid back but I can’t deny they’re certainly similar… I wonder what he would’ve said if she met her. Who knows, maybe Ma-_

“Tiki!” Tiki snapped out of her thought when she heard Anna basically yelling her name. Tiki quickly adjusted her posture, looking Anna in the eyes for a bit until turning her attention to the menu she closed not long ago.

“O-oh yeah, food!” Tiki acknowledged, attempting to hide the slight nervous tone in her voice. “Have you uh… decided on what you want?”

Anna throws Tiki a brief sideways glance, something that Tiki tries to forget she noticed as Anna turns back to her menu. “Well, I was just thinking about ordering a salad, what about you?” Anna inquired, once again shooting Tiki that suspicious glance.

“Oh uh… I’m uh…” Tiki slowed down as her mind started to wander again, after all I bet he’d probably order a salad as well… Gah! Tiki pushed the thought of her mind, continuing once more. “I’m sure I’ll be decided by the time our server gets back.”

Despite thinking that, Tiki wasn’t quite certain about that. It was odd, the way everything seemed to just hit her now, all the memories and all the little thoughts. All the little hand gestures, all the little speech quirks, all the days spent together…

 

“Did I hear server?” The white haired waiter chimed in, once again, seemingly out of nowhere. After Anna got over the initial shock of the waiter’s seemingly silent footfall, she placed her order for a rather modest salad with Tiki eventually settling on a tagliatelle dish. The duo waited for their meals, suddenly a bit more quiet than their prior banter. However, Anna was more than willing to attempt to once again spark conversation.

 

“You know, that guy reminds of this one kid from highschool…” Anna began reminiscing but soon stopped when she noticed Tiki was… Well, probably not paying the closest of attention. She may be looking in Anna’s direction but she had this serious look on her that deviated ever so slightly from the norm. Usually, Tiki has a tendency to have such a serious look but it always has a pinch of warmth, like you can always tell there’s a fun-loving girl underneath. This face however… was not that face. Tiki seemed to be on edge, like as though a single fly landing on her would cause her to flip the table over in disgust. Admittedly, perhaps it’s a fitting look for her but this was not the demeanor that Anna had come to expect from her.

Soon, their main courses arrived and while Anna may have been just eating a salad, in her mind this was espionage. She watched Tiki as she slowly toyed with her pasta dish, looking for something to tip her off to this sudden silence. Then it hit her. The slightly glazed look in her eye, the way she held herself, the slight tilt to her head… Anna reached over towards the center of the table, grabbing an uneaten breadstick. Holding the breadstick like a weapon, she reached out with it, and touched Tiki on the nose.

 

“You don’t need to worry about him anymore.” Anna said quietly, the calm tone of her voice clashing with the bread weaponry she held. “You deserve so much more.”

 

Tiki crinkled her nose and whispered a quiet reply.

“I know.”

 

The dinner ended as it began, quietly. Eventually the bill came, Tiki paying in full for their couple’s dinner, drawing this “date” to a conclusion. The silence persisted until they eventually left the building, leaving the restaurant’s loud atmosphere into the February chill, where a light snowfall had just begun. Unsurprisingly, Anna once again shone through and broke the quiet.

 

“Well that was a nice little dinner, and hey, saving some money here and there is never bad!” She cheerily exclaimed, her now almost bouncy demeanor clashing with that serious face she once showed. In fact, she was literally bouncing, likely an attempt to keep warm given the colder weather.

 

Tiki sniffled.

“Anna,” Tiki began in her usual calm tone “please, never change.”

“Change?” Anna said, cocking her head to one side bringing her finger to her chin with a look on her face as though saying the incorrect thing would be the death of her “I don’t think I change much... Oh! And speaking of change, I’ll need to repay you eventually, right?”

“Oh um, I suppose so. But please, don’t worry about it.” Tiki clarified with a slight smile on her face.

“What? I simply can’t just have you spend your hard earned money on me and then never repay you!” Anna exclaimed, leaning towards Tiki slightly as she said it.

 

Anna gasped and stuck her finger up in the air in a horribly over the top fashion, it was so much like a cartoon character that Tiki half expected a lightbulb to appear over her head.

 

“Oh?” Tiki looked towards Anna pretending to be surprised (when in reality such little moments are almost commonplace with Anna) “What’s on your mind pray te-”

 

Tiki’s sentence was cut short by a tender embrace around her. Anna held Tiki close as she slowly rubbed Tiki’s back. Their shared warmth was comforting, despite the chilled environment around them, it was like a fire had suddenly been lit in Tiki’s heart. Anna chuckled quietly, Tiki slowly closing her eyes as she let herself melt into Anna’s warmth. The moment seemed to last forever, though it was probably only a few seconds, then Anna let go. Anna looked towards Tiki with a smile on her face while Tiki tried her hardest to hide her blushing.

 

“I-It’s… just cold…” Tiki whispered, pushing her chin down into her light jacket.

“Of course it is.” Anna giggled, not breaking her gaze towards Tiki. “So… what do you say we... take this on together?”

“I think…” Tiki once again quietly confessed “I think I’d enjoy that…”


End file.
